Friday Report – May 19, 2017

Public School Forum Honors Former Senator Howard Lee with Annual Education Award

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More than 400 educators, business leaders, government officials and supporters of public schools gathered at the Raleigh Convention Center last night to honor Former Senator Howard N. Lee for his vast contributions to public education. Senator Lee was the recipient of the Forum’s annual Jay Robinson Education Leadership Award, given since 2000 to recognize innovative, creative and effective leadership for public education in North Carolina.

The award is named in honor of the late Dr. Jay Robinson, one of our state’s most distinguished education leaders.

The gala event included a reception, dinner and awards presentation. Dinner music was provided by the Carnage Middle School String Orchestra of the Wake County Public School System.

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Forum President and Executive Director Keith Poston opened the remarks about Lee, stating “thinking about Howard Lee, two words keep coming to my mind – Courageous Humility. Howard Lee did not let hate change him. Instead he set about changing the hate. He set about blazing trails that others still follow, and he did it all with a ‘Courageous Humility” that frankly leaves me awestruck.”

Former Governor Jim Hunt also provided a video tribute for the event. In his remarks, Governor Hunt said “Howard Lee was the man who stood up and stood out. He has done everything you can do in the legislature to improve public schools and to help children. He was my real partner.”

In his acceptance remarks, Senator Lee challenged everyone in the room to get engaged in our public schools and in the lives of our young people, particularly young African-American boys who continue to fall through the cracks.

“These young boys are some of the brightest and most creative children I’ve ever encountered and can absolutely succeed,” Lee said. “However, too often they lack relationships and role models to help guide them along the way. We can provide that – we must provide it. That’s what I intend to do as long as I’m still around, but they need all of you. Our children need you.”

Forum President and Executive Director Keith Poston and Forum Chairman Dr. Michael D. Priddy presented Senator Lee with a piece of pottery by Ben Owen, a North Carolina native and well-known ceramic artist, to commemorate the award.

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The Forum is grateful to our sponsors and everyone who attended the event for joining us to honor Senator Lee.

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New Episodes of Education Matters Return Next Week

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Our weekly TV show Education Matters is currently being pre-empted due to the NHL Playoffs on NBC.

We’ll be back with new episodes starting May 27. Next week’s show will focus on the NC Senate budget and will include a conversation with Senator Erica Smith-Ingram whose district in Northeastern NC bore the brunt of the cuts in the controversial 3 a.m. budget amendment. We also talk with former Senator Howard Lee about leadership in education.

With the Senate’s opening budget salvo of last week, including a substantive Friday morning 3 a.m. amendment, everyone awaits the answering call of the House. Some of the swirling budget questions on the House side this week include, but certainly are not limited to, the following:

Will the House put any funding toward the 2018-19 class size reduction and special subject teacher allotment(s) in HB 13 (because the Senate has none, except an “intent-to-fund” clause)?

Will the House undo any of last Friday’s 3 a.m. amendment that, in part, appeared to target Eastern NC counties represented by Democrats (switching out certain school systems that would benefit from the Teacher Assistant-to-Teacher tuition reimbursement program and eliminating funding for the Eastern NC STEM program that serves primarily low-income African-American students, among other provisions)?

Will the House mimic any of the Senate’s proposed elimination of many filled State Board of Education/NC Department of Public Instruction positions?

Will the House further increase the textbook/digital resources appropriation (going above the Senate’s recurring increase)?

Will the House cut NC DPI’s agency budget and Central Office allotments (as the Senate did)?

Will the House mirror or go beyond the Senate’s increased pay for teachers, principals and assistant principals? Will the House give veteran teachers any increased pay?

Will the House include Personal Education Savings Accounts (PESAs), the newest voucher phenomenon (as the Senate did)?

Will the House have a cost of living increase (COLA) for retirees; and will it maintain retiree health benefits for newly hired future school employees (unlike the Senate’s proposed elimination of such benefits)?

Some insiders raise conjectures about whether the House’s proposed budget will be released next week or later. Legislators seem intent on getting a final budget passed by the 4th of July (however, that is always the intention this time of year). Time will tell, literally.

Other big education news this week includes the House’s bipartisan passage of the “Raise the Age” Juvenile Justice Reinvestment Act HB 280 on Wednesday. This will be one of the most comprehensive pieces of legislation for 16- and 17-year olds involved in the criminal justice system. Unless this legislation passes, NC will remain the only state that prosecutes all such teenagers as adults.

The final education bill to watch from this week is the “Excellent Educators for Every Classroom” SB 599. There are only two sponsors of this bill. It was up for discussion only (no vote) on Wednesday. The Senate Education Committee seemingly intends to take the bill up for a vote next week; however, there are a host of education experts lining up their amendments to the bill as it would significantly re-cast the educator preparation programs in NC, both in programming and in law.

N.C. Senate Republicans were visibly upset with Democrats for prolonging the budget debate with amendments during an after-midnight session last week.

As the clock approached 1 a.m., Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue was summoned to the front of the chamber to talk privately with Senate leader Phil Berger. The Senate had rejected five amendments from Democrats to fund their spending priorities, but each time one proposal was shot down, another one was filed.

Senate Rules Chairman Bill Rabon abruptly called for a recess, stopping the proceedings for nearly two hours. GOP leaders headed to a conference room with legislative budget staff, while Democrats – some surprised by the lengthy delay – passed the time with an impromptu dance party in the hall.

The session finally resumed around 3 a.m., and Republican Sen. Brent Jackson introduced a new budget amendment that he explained would fund more pilot programs combating the opioid epidemic. He cited “a great deal of discussion” about the need for more opioid treatment funding.

Jackson didn’t mention where the additional $1 million would come from: directly from education programs in Senate Democrats’ districts and other initiatives the minority party sought.

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Sen. Erica Smith-Ingram’s rural district in northeastern North Carolina took the biggest hit from the amendment. It strips $316,646 from two early college high schools in Northampton and Washington counties, and it specifically bans state funding from supporting a summer science, math and technology program called Eastern North Carolina STEM.

The Northampton County program has received about $180,000 in recent years to serve 90 high school students, many of whom are African-American and from low-income families.

“I don’t know what motivated the amendment, but it will have a devastating effect on an area that is already suffering,” Smith-Ingram (pictured right) said Saturday, adding that the STEM summer program would shut down if the provision is in the final budget.

She said she thinks the amendment came in response to “miscommunication” between the political parties about Democrats’ amendments. “The future of children should not be caught up in a political disagreement between members,” she said.

The amendment also changes the counties included in a program that offers stipends to teacher assistants who are working on a college degree to get their teaching licenses.

The funding level for the program didn’t change, but seven counties represented by Smith-Ingram and fellow Democratic Sen. Angela Bryant were removed. Instead, the program will only apply to several counties represented by Republican senators.

Smith-Ingram said the counties removed have the highest teacher turnover rate in the state, and helping teacher assistants become teachers would help address the problem.

Other items cut in the late-night amendment include $200,000 to bring fresh produce to food deserts, $250,000 to fund additional staff for the N.C. Museum of Art’s recently expanded art park and $550,000 for a downtown revitalization program. The only remaining funding for the downtown program is directed to Robeson County, which has a Republican senator.

N.C. Senate leader Phil Berger is defending Republican legislators’ controversial 3 a.m. move to strip funding from several education programs in counties represented by Democrats. He argues that the change was necessary to address the state’s opioid epidemic without raising taxes.

The budget amendment was passed moments after it was introduced early Friday morning, following a two-hour Senate recess called when GOP leaders became visibly upset with Democrats for prolonging the budget debate with amendments.

The amendment added about $1 million to programs addressing opioid addiction. The extra money came from cuts to two early college high schools in rural northeastern North Carolina and a summer science, math and technology program for disadvantaged high school students. The amendment also cut a position in the governor’s office and eliminated funding for a program that provides fresh produce in food deserts.

The move made national headlines and prompted criticism from Democrats, who say the amendment was an attempt to retaliate against them.

On Tuesday, Berger issued a statement about the amendment – his first public comment on the issue. “This amendment helped address, without raising taxes, the opioid crisis that Sen. (Paul) Lowe tried to address with a large tax increase in his amendment,” Berger said in an email.

Lowe’s amendment, which was rejected, would have added about $15 million for opioid treatment programs – a proposal from Gov. Roy Cooper’s budget – by scaling back the Senate’s proposed personal income tax cut.

Under the proposal from Lowe, a Democrat from Forsyth County, the reduction in the personal income tax rate from 5.499 percent to 5.35 percent wouldn’t apply to higher income taxpayers. For example, married couples filing jointly and earning more than $1 million annually would continue to pay the 5.499 percent rate, while those earning less would pay 5.35 percent.

The Senate voted 33-15 along party lines to table Lowe’s amendment, which meant it would not get a formal vote.

The House K-12 Education Committee signed off Tuesday on a proposal to put a $1.9 billion school construction bond on the ballot for voter approval in November 2018.

House Bill 866 would allocate money to each county based on a formula that includes average student population and expected growth, as well as the size of the county and its ability to raise its own funds for school construction. Larger, more prosperous counties would be required to match the bond funds, while smaller and low-wealth counties would not.

Figures from the state Department of Public Instruction for the 2015-16 school year estimate the capital need statewide at just over $8 billion, from new construction to renovations and additions to existing schools.

When the state lottery was passed in 2005, state leaders earmarked a substantial portion of the proceeds for school construction, but during the recession, state lawmakers changed the formula to supply more money for teachers and less for construction.

According to DPI, the lottery has supplied only $588 million in capital funding since 2012, and three-quarters of that money has been spent on debt service.

Rep. Jimmy Dixon, R-Duplin, said he supports the bond but said the changes in the lottery formula left schools empty-handed. “According to my calculations, the local school systems should have received an additional $648 million that they did not receive,” Dixon said.

In June, a panel of North Carolina judges will hear a case that pits Republican against Republican in a power struggle over who should steer the Department of Public Instruction.

The department oversees the day-to-day administration of North Carolina public schools, and is ultimately responsible for the education of 1.5 million students. Two parties are fighting for the helm.

Picture the Department of Public Instruction like a big ship – a really big one – with around 800 employees. At the helm, picture one guy: State Superintendent Mark Johnson. As superintendent, Johnson steers the ship, but only when and where the State Board of Education tells him to go. The board consists of 13 other people. You can picture them standing around Johnson, coming to a consensus and telling him where to turn next. They also choose Johnson’s first mate and most important crew members. That’s kind of how the department works. But now, Johnson wants to be able to pick out his own crew, and set his own course.

“I worked extremely hard for a year and half to win this election,” Johnson said in an interview. “I am the duly-elected superintendent of public instruction, and I fully expect to be able to hire the people I need to help me implement that vision.”

Johnson has sided with the General Assembly in their attempt to give him more power over the department. In December, before Johnson took office, state lawmakers tried to give sole control over staffing decisions to the superintendent, along with control over the department budget and authority over a new charter-school district, cutting out the State Board. The State Board of Education opposes the power-shift and is fighting the new law in court. Board chairman Bill Cobey says it’s important that top staffers answer to the superintendent and to board members.

“We like the fact that they’re ‘dual-reports’ because we have standing committees that these top people work with on policy matters. And we certainly are charged with approving policy,” Cobey said in an interview.

The court granted the board a temporary injunction, meaning, for now, Johnson still has to wait for board approval before he turns the wheel. And he’s not thrilled about it. “The state board of education only meets here in Raleigh 1.5 days a month, and consistently there have been some members who aren’t even here for that entire amount of time,” Johnson said. “But I’m the person who’s here every week. You know, I’m the person who, I have my office, and directors and top deputies who are in this building, they come see me when they need an answer on something.”

The friction between Johnson and the board is playing out in the General Assembly, where Senate lawmakers have tentatively stripped the state board of five staffing positions, and given the money to Johnson so he can hire his own staff without board approval.

The principal of an elementary school in one of the state’s smallest counties was named Wells Fargo North Carolina Principal of the Year for 2017 during an awards luncheon in Cary. Winning the title of the state’s top school administrator is Jason Griffin, principal of Hertford Grammar School in Perquimans County, near Elizabeth City in the northeastern corner of the state.

Griffin was selected from a field of eight regional finalists chosen earlier this year following interviews and visits to their schools by the selection committee for the award.

State Superintendent Mark Johnson said Griffin exemplifies the qualities of leadership essential for helping teachers excel and students to achieve. “Hertford Grammar School’s strong progress is clear evidence of Jason’s leadership,” Johnson said. “He makes smart use of data to work with his teachers to personalize learning for all students,” Johnson said. “He delegates to help his teachers grow as leaders themselves, and he works to provide them with innovative strategies to improve teaching and learning for students.”

The Title I school, where nearly two thirds of the 400-plus students are from low-income families, achieved a school grade of “B” for the first time last year. The school, which enrolls third through fifth graders, was also just one of six elementary schools in the state’s northeast education region to earn at least a B while also exceeding their targets for academic growth.

Johnson also recognized Wells Fargo for its longtime sponsorship of the state’s Principal of the Year program, which was started in 1984. “Wells Fargo’s consistent and enthusiastic support for this important recognition helps highlight the critical role that principals play for teachers and students across the state,” he said.

In naming Griffin the 2017 Wells Fargo North Carolina Principal of the Year, Wells Fargo Senior Community Relations Manager Juan Austin said, “Our education system has never been at a more critical juncture than now, and with administrators like Jason, we can see how dedication and effort connects with students, staff and parents on so many levels at Hertford Grammar School. So I’m pleased that we have the opportunity to reward his outstanding work and hold up Jason’s example for others to hopefully follow.”

Griffin joined the faculty at Hertford Grammar in 2011 as a third-grade teacher and served as dean of students before being named principal. He was previously a second-grade teacher at Perquimans Central School, from 2008-2011, and started his education career in 2002 as a third-grade teacher at E.J. Hayes Elementary School in Martin County, where he taught for six years.

Hundreds of Governor’s School alumni are calling on state lawmakers to save the 54-year-old summer enrichment program. Last week, the NC Senate cut the $800,000 it takes to run the program from its 2018-19 budget proposal. The money would instead go toward a new program, the Legislative School for Leadership & Public Service. The cut would mean this summer’s Governor’s School would be the last.

The NC House is creating its own budget after Memorial Day. Governor’s School boosters are lobbying House members to reject the Senate’s plan and reinstate the money. They’ve created savegovernorsschool.com, which answers questions about the budget cut and helps supporters contact their legislators.

Governor’s School started in 1963 at Salem College as a six-week summer enrichment program for the state’s most gifted high school students. In 1978, the school added a program at Meredith College — hence the “East” and “West” school designations. Some 35,000 students have spent their summers on the two campuses studying music, dance, literature, social sciences, philosophy and other subjects. About 650 students attend each summer, living on campus the entire time.

Other attendees remain fiercely loyal to the school through the N.C. Governor’s School Foundation and the Governor’s School Alumni Association. In 2012, when the General Assembly eliminated the program from its budget, members of those groups raised about $700,000 and held a scaled-back version of the program. Lawmakers restored the program the next year. Students now pay $500 to attend.

An estimated 133,000 people in North Carolina would lose access to government food assistance programs under a provision tucked into the Senate budget approved last week.

According to numbers released this week by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services, 132,902 people across the state would lose food assistance if the change is in the final budget. Of those, 51,236 are age 18 or younger – and could therefore lose access to free and reduced-price school meals.

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The provision changes the state’s eligibility requirements for the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP – commonly known as food stamps. The change wouldn’t save the state any money because funding comes from the federal government, but Republican Sen. Ralph Hise of Mitchell County says the change would make the system more fair.

Under current requirements, people can qualify if they receive other government assistance benefits, such as disability payments – even if their income level is higher than the maximum income for food assistance. Known as “broad-based categorical eligibility,” the same policy is used by 38 other states.

President Donald Trump’s full education budget proposal for fiscal 2018 would make notable cuts to the U.S. Department of Education, and leverage existing programs for disadvantaged students and K-12 innovation to promote school choice, the Washington Post reported Wednesday.

Trump’s full education funding blueprint would cut $9.2 billion, or 13.6 percent, from the Education Department’s current $68 billion budget, said the report, based on still-unreleased budget documents. Also, the spending plan calls for the creation of a new, $1 billion federal grant program under Title I to allow students to take federal, state, and local dollars to their public school of choice. That money would be added to the $15.9 billion Title I receives this budget year, fiscal 2017— that current funding is not “portable” to public schools of choice and goes out by formula.

Both the cuts and the new grant for Title I, along with other aspects of the full budget proposal expected to be released as early as next week, are consistent with Trump’s preliminary budget released in mid-March.

Noelle Ellerson Ng, the associate executive director of AASA, the School Superintendents Association, noted that Congress rejected the idea of allowing Title I funds to follow students to the school of their choice when lawmakers passed the Every Student Succeeds Act in 2015. In general, she said she was deeply concerned about the message the budget proposal sends. “This is the first direct threat on ESSA opportunity and ESSA success,” she said. “President Trump is completely undermining federal funding to support key elements of the law that Congress passed less than two years ago.”

There’s a lot to like in the general contours of the budget plan, and in particular its cuts to the Education Department, said Lindsey Burke, the director of the Center for Education Policy at the Heritage Foundation, which supports school choice including vouchers. But the idea of a new federal program under Title I, and additional money for it, is problematic for school choice, which should really remain under the control of states and local communities, she said. “There are merits certainly to Title I portability. But that’s different than setting up a new program with new funding, which is what this appears to be,” Burke said. “If it’s through a new federal program, that’s problematic.”

Applications Open for 2017-18 NC Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP)

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The Public School Forum is now accepting applications for the 2017-18 cohort of the North Carolina Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP).

The Public School Forum has led the North Carolina Education Policy Fellowship Program since 1992, and it has continued to be the only statewide program of its kind that focuses on leadership and professional development in the context of education policy. Each new class continues the trend of high caliber participants and is rich in its members’ range of experiences, both professionally and personally. Fellows come from public schools, higher education, community colleges, state agencies, and a diverse array of education organizations across North Carolina. Each class includes a cohort of Fellows who focus on education policy issues and the wide range of factors that influence education in North Carolina. The program is designed for Fellows to learn about issues and perspectives in education that they don’t always encounter in their daily work so that they can be more informed, rounded contributors to the critical education debates that shape the quality and focus of schools. Fellows increase their awareness of how public policy is made, learn whom the key players are in the formation of this policy, and become more confident and involved in the policy-making process. Leadership development is a key focus of the Education Policy Fellowship Program.

North Carolina educators have plenty of opportunities throughout the fall to attend the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT), a recognized national leader in professional development programming for teachers. Applicants are encouraged to register as soon as possible to ensure a spot. Programs are available to North Carolina educators at the Cullowhee and Ocracoke campuses, online and with NCCAT faculty visiting school districts. NCCAT provides food, lodging and programming. Teachers and or their districts are responsible for travel to and from the center and the cost of the substitute teacher. For more information visit www.nccat.org.

Some upcoming programs include:

14458 • ACHIEVING AGAINST THE ODDS: FOCUS ON READING

September 18–21: Cullowhee

Today’s diverse students enter school eager to become successful in classrooms originally designed for culturally homogeneous populations and are expected to learn from teachers who are often not from the same cultural, ethnic/race or social-class. Unsurprisingly, student performance in reading and other subjects is often low while student dropout and teacher burnout rates are high. This program guides participants to explore and document their experiences in motivating at-risk students to become effective readers. In addition to sharing successful strategies for improving reading skills and producing a written narrative, participants will use several technology applications to capture their stories about students who have achieved against the odds and become motivated and skilled readers who excel academically.

Wondering how to engage your students as they explore and develop math understanding and mastery? You can make math meaningful for your students. Come and refresh your understanding of Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI) as you engage in activities designed to help connect the ways your students are “smart” to the NC Math Standards. Explore and develop learning strategies to support math mastery as we look at planning for and assessing math standards for your grade level. With ideas for the self-smart and the people-smart, the naturalist, musical, verbal, kinesthetic and visual learners, you’ll leave ready to start your year the MI way! This program is presented by A+ Schools of North Carolina.

14485 • READING, WRITING, AND READY BY THIRD GRADE: EARLY GRADES LITERACY INSTRUCTION

November 13–16: Ocracoke

Literacy instruction is as difficult as it is essential. This program will provide early grades teachers with a complement of research-based tools and strategies to help answer some of their more burning questions: How do I teach close reading to students who don’t yet know the alphabet? What level of writing can I attain from children who are still learning to spell? How do I simultaneously provide enrichment for advanced readers and remediation for delayed readers? How can I integrate reading and writing instruction into all other subject areas? Finally, what does this instruction look like in the classroom and how are student engagement and learning measured in this process?

14489 • GOOGLE TOOLS IN SCHOOLS

December 4–7: Ocracoke

Whether or not your school or district has adopted a Google Chromebook environment, if your LEA infrastructure allows for the use of Google Tools and/or Apps, the “Googlesphere” can be an immense help. It can aid in engaging students, keeping in touch with parents, automating feedback and assessment, sharing documents, and more. Hone your skills with the Google Chrome Browser, with Google Apps, with Android Apps, and with Chrome OS so that you can engage your students using freely available tools on almost any platform.

Women in Educational Leadership Symposium (WIELS) Call for Proposals

The second conference of the Women in Educational Leadership Symposium (WIELS) will be held at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina on September 22 through September 24, 2017. The purpose of WIELS is to bring women together to share, learn, and grow in leadership. Women who are interested in learning from others and those who are willing to share skills and expertise are urged to attend. This conference aims to provide personalized learning and mentoring opportunities for those who aspire to become or currently serve as educational leaders. The conference theme is Advancing the Leader Within: Building Capacity. Attendees are urged to submit proposals on salient issues, skills, and experiences affecting women leaders.

The Friday Report is published weekly by the Public School Forum of NC and is distributed to Forum members, policymakers, donors, media, and Forum subscribers. Archived editions can be found at www.ncforum.org.